Lehigh Twp. board gives head planner another chance

Supervisors reinstate commission chairman after residents protest.

January 10, 2008|By Michael Duck Of The Morning Call

A public outcry helped undo a plan to reshape Lehigh Township's Planning Commission on Tuesday.

Newly elected Supervisors Darryl Snover and Chris Amato, who had pledged to limit development in the rural township, had voted with Supervisor Brian Moser to oust longtime Planning Commission Chairman David Shulman during a reorganization meeting Monday.

Some Planning Commission members then threatened to resign in protest, and upset residents packed Tuesday night's supervisors' meeting. After hearing their arguments, Amato agreed to give Shulman another chance and voted with Supervisors Keith Hantz and Dell Grove to reappoint him.

"I listened to what the Planning Commission had to say, I listened to the voices of the people who are now my constituents, and I decided it was the proper choice for me to make now," Amato said in an interview Wednesday.

"They did the right thing," Planning Commission member Rich Mullen said, canceling his threat to resign.

Mullen, who was unable to attend Tuesday's meeting, stressed that he didn't join the commission as Shulman's ally, but he's grown to respect him.

Snover, who's also the new supervisors chairman, and Amato and Moser had raised concerns about how often Shulman abstained from commission votes. "The number bothered me," said Amato, who added that he had talked with Shulman while forming his opinion.

However, commission members' points during Tuesday's meeting convinced Amato to take another look at Shulman and get more information, he said.

"We need to work together," Amato said, stressing the need for better communication between supervisors and the planning commission.